Pop the bubble
by AryanaQ
Summary: Nikita eloped and got married and Alex was the last to know. Apparently she's totally fine with it, but Nikita's intuition says otherwise and intuition is something that's never failed the ex-spy. One-shot.


Just a one shot about an idea that popped into my head after rewatching 4x06. It seemed funny. Enjoy! Review are highly appreciated :)

* * *

"You eloped", Alex said while sipping her coffee and looking around, admiring the beautiful open space living room in Nikita's new home.

"Yes…"

"And you got married…"

"I did", Nikita answered, analyzing Alex's demeanor, not knowing if her friend was happy about it or upset by the fact that she wasn't present at the wedding. The whole situation was making her a little nervous and Alex's poker face wasn't helping either.

"Well…Congratulations are in order then", Alex said with a brighter than usual smile. She put down her coffee mug and gave Nikita a hug, but always the intuitive one, Nikita sensed something was off.

"Alex…."

"Woow, look at this ring", Alex exclaimed enthusiastically, admiring the exquisite piece of jewelry on her friend's hand. "Michael really outdid himself! I'm impressed. I never imagined he could have such good taste. It's gorgeous!"

"Thanks…" Nikita answered, her eyes still fixed on Alex's face. "Listen…."

"Do you have any pictures? I would love to see them! I bet you looked stunning"

"Actually, I have a few, courtesy to the two hula girls that were our witnesses", Nikita said, trying to make Alex smile a little.

"Great! Come on, show me!"

Reluctantly, Nikita walked towards a cabinet, opened a drawer and took out an envelope.

"Here", she said, handing Alex the pictures.

"Come, sit with me. I want to hear every detail of what must have been the happiest day of your life!" Alex said, inviting Nikita to join her on the sofa.

They spent the next hour looking to those pictures over and over again, every time Alex insisting that Nikita would comment on every one of them, again and again.

"So, do you think we could stop for a lunch break? We can resume after and I can give you every detail, in case I forgot something" Nikita said jokingly.

"Ha, ha, very funny. Let's eat, I'm starving!"

"No kidding….."

"I'll go get the guys."

The rest of the day was a pleasant, relaxing one for the two couples. They enjoyed the sun, the crystal clear water and delicious cocktails at a nearby hot spot. Still, Nikita kept a close watch on Alex. She was sure the girl was keeping something from her and waited impatiently for the happy bubble to burst.

"Hey, Sam, can I ask you something?"

"Of course, Nikita, what?"

"What's wrong with Alex?"

"What do you mean? Nothing's wrong with her"

"Oh, really? She's been like a frakin' pink, happy bubble gum all day long and if I know Alex, which I absolutely do, then something is definitely wrong!"

"She's just happy for you guys. What's wrong with that?"

"Ok, stop with the crap! You know something is not right, but you won't tell me"

"Nikita….it's really not my place to…."

"Oh, Jesus, stop, stop! Just answer me one question and don't even think about lying. What did she say?"

"Ok, I'm a little lost here. What did she say when? About what?"

"What did she say when she found out that we eloped and got married. And how did she found out in the first place? I wanted to be the one to tell her."

"That's two questions, you know?"

"Yeah, and you're gonna answer both of them"

"Well, first of all, Birkhoff sent us some aerial pictures from the big event. He's keeping tabs on all of us, just in case, so that's how we found out"

"Nerd…I swear I'm…."

"Hey, hey, calm down. He did nothing wrong and you know it!"

"We'll see about that….ok….and what did she say?

"Nothing."

"I asked you not to lie to me, Sam"

"And I'm not. I'm serious. She didn't say a thing. We opened the file, saw the pics, I went to take a shower, when I came back she was still staring at the screen, I asked her if she was Ok, she looked at me, smiled and asked me what I wanted for dinner"

"That's it? Nothing about the pictures?"

"Not one single word"

"Crap…"

"What?"

"Nothing….I'll handle this"

"Ok, but be careful. When that pretty pink bubble is gonna burst, it ain't gonna be rainbows and butterflies coming out of it."

"Trust me, I know it."

After a pleasant evening, everybody was ready to call it a night. Everybody but Nikita. She needed to make things right with Alex and she couldn't wait another second.

"Ok, guys, I'm kind of beat. I'm gonna go to bed now" Sam said

"Yeah, me too", Alex said yawning, "it's been a hell of a day"

"Hey, Alex", Nikita stepped in, "could you stay for a few minutes. I'm not really tired and I could use some company."

"Really? My company? I can get Michael for you, if you like." Alex said smiling and sounding totally sincere. But Nikita knew better. She knew the sarcasm hidden behind those kind words.

"Well, I bet Michael is half asleep by now and I don't want to wake him, so I'll have to make do with you, won't I?

"Make do?! Well excuse me for not being good enough"

_That's good, _Nikita thought, _come on, let it all out_.

"Why are you smiling?" Alex asked, seeing Nikita's wicked smile.

"Because I'm beginning to see the first cracks in that pretty bubble you've been floating on the whole day"

"What bubble? What the hell are you talking about? There's no bubble!"

"Oh, really? My bad, then. I guess I was just imagining things."

"Whatever…."

"So….do you want to hear more about the wedding? I'm really excited to share everything with you."

"Yeah, why not, go ahead, share away!" Alex said, sitting down on the sofa.

"Oh, Alex", Nikita said, joining her friend and ready to put on a show, "the day was just perfect, magical. Not too hot, which is rare around here and the breeze and the big waves completed the scenery perfectly. I was so, so nervous that day when I woke up and when I started to get ready I wasn't so sure I could go through with it. I mean, I never saw myself as a bride and I was freaking out. But as soon as I saw Michael waiting for me on the beach, I completely relaxed. And the ceremony was beautiful. I was so emotional, I could hardly breathe. Oh, and the two girls who had to be our witnesses, also acted as my bridesmaids, so…."

"You know what, I'm gonna have to stop you right there because I'm really, really tired. You can tell me more about it tomorrow, ok?"

"Oh, please, just five more minutes. I really want to tell you about my bridesmaids" Nikita said with an innocent look on her face.

"Yeah, yeah, they were perfect and all. But guess what, I don't want to hear about your freakin' bridesmaids."

"Oh, why not"

"Oh, for God's sake, because I should have been your bridesmaid! There, I've said it! Happy? You've popped the bubble! I should have been there with you. Helping you get dressed, put on your make up, do your hair, hold your bouquet and share the happiness with you. Me! Not some damn hula girls."

Nikita sat on the sofa, watching Alex pace back and forth, letting it all out. She knew the girl wasn't finished, so she kept quiet, just looking at her, with a knowing smile on her face.

"And you couldn't even tell me yourself. I had to find out from Birkhoff! In fact, I was the last to find out. The LAST! First it was Nerd and Sonya, then Sam when he opened the file and then me! Were you even going to tell me any time soon? I mean, it's your life, after all and you are entitled to do as you like, but after everything we've been through…I never imagined you would not want me by your side on such an important day! Do I matter so little to you?"

"Could you possibly be this stupid?" Nikita asked almost laughing. She never saw Alex rant like that and it was rather amusing.  
"Oh, Great! Not only am I not unimportant, I'm also stupid. Good to know how you feel about me. And why are you laughing about?"

"Because I never imagined you as the jealous type."

"Jealous? This is ridiculous! I'm not jealous!"

"Yes, you are. But it's Ok. It's kind of flattering….in a weird way…"

"I'm glad I amuse you" Alex said, slumping back on the sofa.

Nikita looked at her friend for a few seconds and then she got up.

"Oh, now you're leaving? You've made me see red and now you're going to sleep?"

"Relaaax, I'm not going anywhere…..I just wanted to get these" Nikita said, coming back with the stack of wedding pictures.

"Oh, please, not again. I think we've had enough for the day" Alex said, starting to see the ridiculousness of the situation, after all her pent up emotions dissipated. "I admit, I might have been a little over board."

"Just shut up! My turn to speak now."

Nikita spread the pictures on the coffee table and chose three of them.

"You've been looking at these pictures for 100 times today and making me do it, too, but you failed to see some things. Some very important things. I think you're out of practice."

"Oh, really! Like what?"

"Look at this" Nikita said, giving the first picture to Alex. "What do you see?"

"I see a close up of you kissing Michael. Not something I've never seen before…." Alex said, like a teenager who'd seen her parents kissing too many times before.

"Anything else?"

"I don't kn…..Oh….." Alex inhaled sharply, her eyes finally falling on what she was supposed to see. A necklace. A white gold necklace with a green emerald butterfly pendant. She'd given that to Nikita as a present for one of her birthdays. Alex was always very thoughtful when it came to occasions like that. She always got special things for her friends and most of all for her best friend. The butterfly was her thing, her symbol and she wanted to share it with the person who, after all, helped her reinvent herself and have a second chance at life.

"You still have it."

"Of course I do. I never let go of things that are important to me" Nikita said softly. "Next picture. What do you see?"

This time it was easier for Alex to find what she was looking for, since she had an idea what Nikita was trying to show her.

" The earrings….." Small emerald green butterflies, perfectly matching the necklace. Those were just a spontaneous gift, no occasion. Alex saw them in a jewelry store during one of her missions and they were such a perfect fit to the pendant that she had to buy them for Nikita.

"Ok, the last one. What do you see here, Alexandra Udinov? You little jealous, hotheaded, Russian heiress!"

It was a close up of Nikita's hand, holding a beautiful white orchid bouquet. And she saw it. Right there, on Nikita's slender wrist it was the very first gift that Alex had given her friend. It was on a Valentine's Day and Alex was recently promoted as an agent. She was on a shopping spree and when she saw that bracelet she knew it was the perfect way to celebrate that day with Nikita and the perfect way to thank her for everything she did for her. It was after all a day to celebrate love in all shape or form. And she loved her friend with all her heart. Seeing that bracelet on Nikita's hand, she felt her eyes water.

"You had that, too?"

"Alex….look at me." Nikita cupped Alex's cheek and made the girl look into her eyes.

"I didn't plan this. The whole eloping thing. It was Michael's idea and I didn't have clue about what was happening until we arrived here. I thought it was going to be just a quick vacation. Don't think I didn't give him a piece of my mind" Nikita said smiling."

"I bet you did, poor Michael"

"But in the end I think it was the most romantic thing in the world and I love him for it!"

"It really is….and I am happy for you, honestly. I guess I was jealous, after all. I'm sorry if I acted like a bitch."

"Well, a little bit, but I deserved it I guess. But the point is that I wanted you there with me. I missed having you there and that's why I wore the things you gave me. To feel like you were there in some way. I would have wanted you to help me dress and do my hair and all and I really could have used having you to calm down my nerves, but it was what it was. And I wanted you to see these pictures because I want you to understand that even though you weren't there physically, you were there with me every step of the way, Alex. The necklace, the earrings, the bracelet….I had you all over me, baby" Nikita said with a seductive wink.

"Oh my God, that's way too kinky" Alex laughed. "Be careful, I might get the wrong idea."

"Oh, yeah, right! Anyway, I just want you to know you don't have anything to be jealous about. You know how much I love you and how much you matter to me. And if you say one more time that you matter little to me, I will kick your ass like it's never been kicked before, you hear me?"

"Loud and clear, sensei!"

"Ok….let's get some sleep now. We have a new day of fun ahead of us tomorrow."

The girls headed for the bedrooms together, but just as they were about to say good night, Nikita spoke. "Hey, Alex. Can I hug the bridesmaid?"

"Oh, God, you're such a big baby" Alex said, laughing. "Come here"

They hugged and stayed like that for a long moment, just content to be together again.

"I love you, Alex….Never doubt that"

"I never did…..I love you, too"

"Ok, enough with the mushy things. We're bad ass, ex spies", Nikita said jokingly, "so good night, jealous Russian girl."

"Yeah, yeah, you'll make fun of me forever, I know. Good night, big baby."


End file.
